Fluorometers are described, for example, in International Publications No. WO 01/35079 and WO 99/60381, both of which are incorporated herein in their entireties by reference.
For various applications, an inexpensive optical instrument including a low heat-generating light source that uses minimal power is desirable. For various purposes, an inexpensive optical instrument including an LED excitation source capable of simultaneously illuminating one or more sample containers is desirable.